Since we have been here in Sarasota and during our many walks we could not help but notice the 'new' posh thing for your little darling doggie is its own pushchair. I suppose that many of the dogs that people purchase here tend to be small perhaps due to being in apartments or small condos and when it comes for going for a walk, that perhaps a ten yard walk is equal to about 10 miles for a bigger dog. So if you want to go for a walk which is longer than ten yards then you have a problem which has now been solved by having a doggies own pushchair.We have noticed many varieties of these chairs but when we first got here we thought that perhaps the dog was in the chair as the child was running around somewhere but when we realised that the average child's pushchair here is a 4x4 8 litre monster with sixteen wheels and built in TV with surround sound and a fully integrated Sat/Nav device and crash avoidance system, we then realised that our original thoughts could perhaps be incorrect. The average doggy's 
pushchair tends to be a little smaller with two sections. The lowest section is where the dog is if it's been naughty and is fully enclosed but when he has been a good boy you can go upstairs to the room with a view. Anyway back to our day.
Today we were promised a really beautiful day with lots of sun and really hot although when we woke up there was so much mist or fog you could hardly see 25 yards ahead. Anyway we left for downtown with the full understanding that the weather would significantly improve. We parked next to the marina and walked through it until we came to Marina Jacks Restaurant & Bar; which is a nice place to hang out when the sun goes down and of course have a nice meal. We then wanted to visit the local market and happened upon an Arts and Craft Market with perhaps a 100 stalls selling some beautiful handmade glass, 
jewellery and paintings etc, some of the pieces we would love to purchase and take home however we have no wall space left so it would be a terrible waste. There were some guys with a BBQ offering all sorts of steak and sausage and chicken and pulled pork sandwiches which really looked very good but as it was not yet lunchtime we gave it a miss. After leaving the Arts and Crafts fare we went to the Public Library as Noel needed a PC and printer with internet connection so as to print off some Hotel Booking stuff. The library provides the service pretty much free of charge except for the printing but there is a very complex system to get your print out including two computers, several references and then some money in the slot machine, but it all worked after help from the help desk. While we were there a young man went to the information desk and asked where the 'Self help Section' was, the information receptionist said they could not assist as it would be self defeating. Ha.
A sandwich lunch plus some walking around and a little shopping and we headed back to check out a cinema we had not seen before on University drive. Its right next door to a 'real English Pub' selling steak and kidney pie, fish and chips, sausage and mash and Pizza?
The cinema was quiet and we were surprised at the low cost, it was $1.00 matinees and $ 2.00 other times anyway we plan to go next Monday and perhaps have a dinner in the steak house across the road as we do not fancy the English pub food.
Rib eye steak and salad tonight was again excellent (thanks Costco and Whole Foods!), with a little whisky beforehand to get the juices flowing. We then listened to two episodes of the Radio 4 'Friday night is Comedy Night' with Sandi Tostvik and the 'News Quiz' all very funny at times and well worth listening to. To end the evening we watched some more crime thriller programs where you know he did kill his wife and child but there was no real evidence to prove it. This was followed by police picking up a very well known family man who spent lots of time with charity projects and also helping at his church. He turned out to be a failed Wall Street Trader who having lost lots and lots of money decided to rob banks to get money so as to avoid his wife finding out that he had lost his job. Not unreasonable I thought. Considering the amount of public money going into Banks in the last year it's about time we all got some back. So Weybridge Lloyds TSB, be on your guard.
Whilst writing this stuff on Sunday morning, the 24th Jan, there are hundreds of Harley Davison Motor Bikes passing on the road which is about 200 yards away, must be a party going on somewhere, if only we had brought our leather jackets ,jeans ,tattoos and piercings....
A final note, Noel has just piped up "You know Alister Cooks 'Letter from America'? Was it the first Blog?"
